Coaching Love
by KatieKamijo808
Summary: Rin has a terrible nightmare one night and ends up being afraid of the water. Seijuro has a dark secret that he's been hiding. When they find out each others secrets, what will happen? (Just know that some things from the story are fictional. All rights for characters goes to the creators of Free! Iwatobi Swim Club.)


_Rin wiped the remaining drops of water off his face as he pushed his way into the locker rooms. He could hear people whispering about his time, which was his best yet. He grinned triumphantly as he made his way to his locker. He looked in the mirror, and froze, his face paling. He stepped closer to the mirror and reached his hand up to his face. He traced his hand down his jawline and stared into the reflection's eyes. This was… his father?_

_Rin reached a hand out and touched the mirror. He quickly pulled his hand back when the mirror rippled and he stared at the ripples until they disappeared. He then touched the mirror again, but this time stuck his whole arm inside. He ended up being sucked into the mirror and he let out a scream of terror as he was pulled into darkness. _

_He squeezed his eyes shut and when he opened them, he noticed the murky water of a lake. He opened his mouth to scream again, and water flowed in. He started to drown. He tried to swim to the surface but it seemed like no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make it. Suddenly, memories of his father forced their way into his mind. Memories he had forgotten about, and even memories that he remembered. One of him and his father fishing, his father teaching him to swim, and finally, a memory of his father telling him a story._

_His father smiled and looked out at the sunset. "Let me tell you something Rin. When I was your age, _my_ father told me something I will never forget. He said 'Sometimes you'll love something _so_ much, that in the end, it will kill you…'"_

Rin's eyes shot open and he sat up. He gasped for air and coughed. He clutched his shirt where his heart was and stared at the bedframe. He reached up and felt his face, then realized it was wet. He had been crying. He shivered and buried his face in his arms as he let out soft cries.

"Rin? Are you okay down there?" Nitori whispered and his head suddenly appeared at the edge of the top bunk.

Rin wiped his eyes and nodded. "Mm, yeah. I'm fine Nitori. Just… had a bad dream is all." He said in a soft voice.

There was no sound and then the bed above him creaked as Nitori slid out of his covers and down the ladder. He crawled onto Rin's bed and cocked his head to the side as he studied him. "You're crying… are you sure you're alright?"

Rin laughed softly and nodded. "I'm fine. Nothing to fret over…" Rin felt bad about lying, but he didn't want to worry Nitori more than he had already.

Nitori hesitated, then nodded and climbed off his bed. He then pulled him into a hug and smiled. "Get some sleep Senpai. We're very busy tomorrow." He then climbed back up the ladder and crawled into his covers, falling into a deep sleep.

Rin watched him, then laid back and stared at the top of his bunk. He exhaled a long breath, and then closed his eyes hesitantly, praying for no dreams. His prayers were answered.

_Clear. Let your mind be clear._ Rin begged himself as he swam in the water. It had only been a few hours since his nightmare, but he couldn't shake it off. The last words his dad said repeated in his head and he shivered even though he was surrounded by water. Before realizing it, Rin had stopped swimming and stood up. Cursing under his breath, Rin smacked at the water and let out a yell of frustration which caused everyone to look his way. "What are _you_ looking at?" He growled as he made his way to the edge and pulled himself out.

Nitori was standing in front of him and he held out his towel. "H-here you go Senpai… are you sure you're okay? From last night I mean?"

Rin's eyes grew wide and he glared at the towel, snatching it out of his hands. "I'm fine." He said in a sharp tone, and then dried off his face.

"Matsuoka! I'd like to have a word!" Seijuro said loudly as he made his way to the exit.

Rin glared at the back of his head as he handed the towel to Nitori and followed his coach.

When they were alone, Seijuro stopped walking and Rin stopped a few feet away. He crossed his arms over his chest, then jabbed a finger behind him. "You're taking precious practice time."

Seijuro took a deep breath and faced him. He had dark rings under his eyes as if he hadn't been sleeping well. "Rin, I don't know what happened that made you be so _cranky_, but I'd like it if you lost the attitude and started focusing. You've been doing terrible today." He placed a hand on his waist and gestured to him. "What happened? You can share it with me."

Rin sucked in a breath of air and held it for a moment. He stared at Seijuro, his eyes tracing over every feature of his face, then he narrowed his eyes. "What are you trying to pull Mikoshiba?"

Seijuro smirked. "Please, call me Seijuro. Or Coach. Just, don't call me Mikoshiba." He looked like he shivered before he shook his head. "I'm not pulling anything, but you obviously have something biting at you."

Rin sighed and nodded. "It was a bad dream. That's all Coach. I'm sorry but… I just got emotional." He rubbed his neck nervously and looked to the side. "Sorry to bother practice with my attitude…" He mumbled.

Seijuro shook his head. "There's no need to apologize Rin. Just please, don't do it again. I would hate having to discipline you for disobeying my request." He started walking back to the pool. "If you need a moment, go ahead and stay out here. Come back when you feel better, okay?" He patted his shoulder, and then pulled the door open, disappearing into the sound of morning practice.

Rin clenched his fists, took a deep breath, and released it. Instead of trying to force the dream out of his head, Rin moved his eyes to the window to the pool. He watched others swim, noticing how hard they were pushing themselves. Some couldn't pull themselves out, and others lay on the ground after finally struggling out. Rin sighed and kept his mind focused on training. Smiling, he made his way back into practice.

As the day's passed, Rin's strange fear of the water started to disappear, and eventually did. He was happy that he was getting better, but he still had a small fear of the water and he would hear his father's words echoing through his head.

It was a normal Thursday afternoon for Rin: going after school to his own personal training when nobody else was around to watch or annoy him. It had only been a few minutes since Rin got in the pool, and then he heard the echo of a door opening. He quickly stood in the pool and slid his goggles up.

Seijuro was frozen by the door, his eyes wide. His lip was bleeding and he opened his mouth, and then closed it. Seijuro cleared his throat, and then took a deep breath. "I didn't think anybody would be here…" He said quietly, almost _too_ quietly.

Rin frowned when he noticed his bleeding lip. He had noticed something new about Seijuro each day for the last few weeks. There would be a bruise on his arm or torso, there were cuts, he would wear a jacket or pants for days, even if it was scorching hot outside. One day he even showed up to practice with sunglasses on even though they were inside. Rin was starting to grow worried, but, then again, Seijuro was very loud mouthed and liked to say things that would piss people off. It was probably just from brawls, but nobody asked him about anything. Rin decided to ignore it; even though he had the feeling something was wrong.

Rin remembered that he was spoken to and he cleared his throat and nodded. "I… um, I usually come here on Thursdays just so I can… practice more… are you okay Coach? Your lip…"

Seijuro's eyes grew wide and his hand quickly found its way to his bleeding lip. "Oh, I hadn't even noticed that… thank you Rin. I'll just go clean up then leave. Sorry to interrupt…" He quickly made his way to the locker room.

Rin noticed he was limping and frowned. He swam to the edge, pulled himself out, and followed Seijuro. By the time Rin got inside, Seijuro was already next to the sink and washing his lip with a damp paper towel. Rin leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. "Are you sure you're okay? Your lip is bleeding and you're limping-."

Seijuro looked at Rin with wide eyes. "Limping? Is it bad?"

Rin frowned. "Seijuro, what's going on? You're not acting like yourself lately… You don't realize things that… that should be something you realize right away. You've been distant and you've been hiding from everyone. Please just tell me what's-"

Seijuro slammed his hands on the sink. "Stop Rin!" He looked at him with wide eyes. "Please just… stop asking me."

Rin's eyes grew wide and he watched him. "Oh… well… I'm sorry Seijuro. I didn't mean to pester you." He pushed himself off the wall and stepped back.

Seijuro looked up at him with sad eyes and rubbed his temples, sighing softly. "I'm sorry Rin. I… I'm just tired." He offered a small smile and stood up, throwing the paper towel away. "I've been through a lot in these past few weeks and I just… I really need some fun." He chuckled. "That's all."

Rin watched him and then nodded slowly. "Fun? Well then, I could take you out to do something? We could do karaoke? Or we could go see a movie…"

Seijuro smirked and looked at him. "You want to take _me _out? But I just completely yelled at you! Plus, I'm your coach! Wouldn't that completely embarrass you? I mean…" He then flushed and looked away. "I'm sorry…"

Rin shook his head. "It's alright Seijuro… and, for the record, I don't mind really. Even though you're my coach and just yelled at me, you still look like you need the fun." He smiled. "Just let me get changed and we can go."

"B-but… shouldn't you finish your swimming?"

Rin shook his head. "I need a break anyway." He smiled and made his way to his locker. "Where would you like to go Coach?" There was no reply and Rin turned to face Seijuro. He was crying. "Ah! W-why are you crying?" He dropped his shirt and hesitated.

Seijuro shook his head. "I'm sorry I just… you're being so nice to me… I don't know why…" He wiped his eyes with his jacket.

Rin chuckled. "Oh, I see. Well, it's because you were nice to me. You're always nice to me. Now, clean up and I'll get changed, okay?"

Seijuro nodded and smiled. "Okay."


End file.
